Signs
by I Wish I Was As Cool As You
Summary: A small 5 chapter story. Life leads Steph down an alternative path and away from Trenton. Following a heartbreak and feeling betrayed she moves to Texas to start a new life. Will she be happy again and ever come home? Will she find happiness with the man she loves?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All recognisable characters belong to Janet Evanovich.  
>I'm just borrowing them<strong>

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><p><strong>Chapter 1Prologue **

Life has a way of taking you down the paths that you least expect. Sometimes it gently leads you down an easy path and other times, it'll knock you down and drag you through the mud. My life was always the latter; nothing ever went smoothly in any aspect.

The old me was a fugitive apprehension agent (fancy way of saying bounty hunter), whilst I wasn't great bounty hunter I was always relatively lucky with my capture rate. However, they were always messy. I would end up covered in garbage, get shot at and have my car explode or end up with a stalker. Like I said, messy.

Back then I was in love with 3 men. Yeah that's right, 3.

As most people know, I was in an on and off relationship with Trenton Cop, Joe Morelli. Our relationship was unhealthy but fun, minus the constant screaming matches. We decided to call it quits after I had received another stalker. Joe is now married to a teacher.

Then there was Ranger aka Carlos Manoso, the dark mysterious man in black. He was tough, sexy, generous and amazing in bed. But he didn't do relationships; all he could offer me was a job, cars or a roll in the hay whenever the urge arose. Whilst I didn't want the whole white picket fence lifestyle, I did want a relationship. So we decided it would be best if we remained friends, with no 'funny' business.

Which brings me to man three, the one and only, Lester Santos. We had been dating for three months before he one day disappeared on a mission without a word. Up until then our relationship had been amazing, well at least I thought it had. We hung out every night and he took me out to dinner at least twice a week. He wasn't the playboy that until then I had known, he was a sweet, caring and funny guy.

But one night when we had a date planned he never showed, no phone call nothing. Then two weeks later I found out he had left for a mission.

I sighed shaking the thoughts from my head. I focused my attention back on my text books, marking passages I thought might be relevant.

Checking the word count on my paper I let out a groan. I felt like I had been typing and making notes for hours and I had only typed 3,428 words out of 10,000.

A whimper caught my attention from down the hall. I quietly got up and made my way to my bedroom, peering in I saw my gorgeous boy stirring in his crib.

Studying? Baby? I bet you're thinking, 'what the hell is going on?', how very un Stephanie like.

After Lester left, I discovered I was pregnant. When I told my mom she demanded I marry Joe as she would not tolerate a child being born out of wedlock. After I told her the baby wasn't Joes and I would never marry him we had a huge screaming match and she kicked me out, practically disowning me. Thankfully my Dad and Grandma Mazur stuck by me when they found out.

I decided that living under the burgs microscope whilst being pregnant and unmarried wasn't my idea of fun.

When I went to Rangeman to give my notice I heard a couple of the guys talking about Lester, saying that he was going to dump me but got called on a mission before he got the chance. I didn't recognise the two guys who were talking and as I walked past they nodded at me, obviously having no idea who I was either.

I quickly gave my notice to Tank telling him I was going to try something new and a little less dangerous, and then ran out before the tears could fall. Woody found me crying in the stairwell as he entered from the garage.

After blubbering everything to him about Les leaving to being pregnant with his baby and my mom telling me to that I was never welcome in her home again, I told him I was going to move and he decided to help me out. He told me he had a place in Texas that I could live in as long as he was allowed to visit when he was in town.

So two weeks later, we loaded up the back of his Dodge Ram and left in the middle of the night. He helped me get settled in his house, a lovely 3 bedroom house in Cherry Creek about 10 miles from Austin.

I enrolled at the University of Texas in Austin, studying psychology before the baby was born. 3 months later I discovered I was having a boy. Woody came down for the ultrasound and was smiling like a madman when he saw the ultrasound and heard the heartbeat.

Woody would come down every couple of weeks, which nobody thought was suspicious as he would always go home most weekends.

Our friendship was amazing and only got stronger over time. He was like a big overprotective, caring brother and to be honest, I actually enjoyed it.

He helped me settle into Texas easily by introducing me to his family and some friends he grew up with or went into the marines with.

At 7½ months I woke up to really bad cramps. I got up and paced around for a bit when a crippling pain caused me to double over and dig my nails into the door frame letting out a slight scream. I knew something was terribly wrong so I rang for an ambulance then called Woody. He stayed on the phone with me until the ambulance arrived telling me he was on his way to the airport now and would be there soon.

I was rushed into emergency surgery and gave birth at 12.39am October 23 2010 to a tiny little boy, Aaron Miguel Santos Plum. He was rushed off to the NICU, weighing only 3 pounds 4 ounces.

When I came back to after my surgery Woody was running his fingers through my hair softly speaking Spanish.

He stayed with me for the next few days and came with me to visit Aaron as often as we could and held me when I cried of a night before having to go back to Trenton for work.

A month later he flew back to bring us both home together for the first time. Having him around was so helpful.

Here we are now, a year since I left Trenton, with a gorgeous 5 month old boy and a quiet life I never thought I'd enjoy.

I reached into the crib and picked Aaron up, giving him a cuddle on the way to the kitchen.

Life was perfect. At least for now it was, because nothing lasts forever.

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><p><strong>This is my first ever Fanfic, so please let me know what you think.<strong>

**It's just a small 5 chapter story that I threw together.**

**Please R&R**

**Thanks  
><strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Just playing with the characters but I promise I'll give them back.**

**Thank you everyone for your overwhelming response to this story. I really appreciate your reviews and feedback.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

*Back in Trenton* - Lester POV

I had returned from a long and painful mission that lasted 6 months, only to find out Steph had left one day and nobody had heard from her since.

My handler rang me and told me I had 20 minutes to get my crap together. I was still packing when he arrived. I had no opportunity to ring Steph and tell her what was going on.

Bobby, who was over grabbing some DVD's for the guys movie night promised to tell her for me.

When I got back he told me that she hadn't come in for a few weeks after I had left and he hadn't had a chance to tell her where I was. She had been avoiding the office and the bonds office until she resurfaced and received the bad news from Bobby.

I had gone to her parent's house on numerous occasions but her dad kept turning me away, her mother never answered the door and even her crazy grandmother wasn't talking to me. I get the feeling that they're not too pleased with me for whatever reason. Maybe Steph thought I had just changed my mind and left her. Seeing as the night I got called away we were meant to be going for dinner.

The reception I received from Mary Lou was a lot less frosty although she seemed weary of talking to me, almost as if she felt like she would be betraying Stephanie if she did. Neither she nor Lenny knew where Steph had gone and she hadn't told them she was leaving town. Apparently they hadn't spoken much then or lately as Mary Lou's kids had been sick and her youngest had just started school when Steph disappeared. However she told me that Steph had called her and told her she was fine and had decided to leave Trenton. Permanently.

When I visited the bonds office to collect the Rangeman skips, it was like walking into a battlefield. Lula was in full rhino mode and attacked me the second the door closed behind me.

"What the hell did you do? Huh, you hurt my white girl and that shit don't fly with me." She ranted, waving her hands around at me. Her face was bright red, matching her crazy hair and spandex outfit of the day. Red leopard print in about 3 sizes too small and the shortest miniskirt I'd ever seen.

I hobbled over to Connie's desk for our current outstanding skips. With my current injury I was confined to a desk job and got the fun privilege of researching the skips. Getting shot and having shrapnel embedded in your leg sucked.

"Excuse you Lula, but I got back and she was gone. I didn't have a choice, I HAD to go and I am doing everything in my power to find her. If you know anything at all, you will tell me. Now!" I remember growling at her and having my patented 'don't mess with me' face on.

It hadn't helped because they, like Mary Lou knew nothing except she didn't plan on coming back from wherever she was. No matter where I went I just ended back up at square one. Nobody knew anything, or at least nobody was sharing if they did.

I ran my hands across my face, the stubble scratching my hand from not shaving for a week.

I decided to try the Plum residence again. See if Mrs Plum was home. I knew from going to lunch with Stephanie before that Grandma Mazur played Bingo after getting her hair done on Wednesdays and Mr Plum had been spending a lot of his time at the lodge lately.

Mrs Plums Buick was parked in the garage with the door open so I knew she was home. I knocked on the front door.  
>When it opened I got a glare that would make even Ranger cringe.<p>

"Good Afternoon Mrs Plum. May I please come in and speak with you for a moment?" I used my best manners (my mother would be so proud).

I could tell she was having an internal battle. Weighing up whether to be a bad housewife and turn me away or let me in. The movement of curtains across the street had her ushering me inside quickly before shutting the door.

"How dare you come to my home" She snarled at me. "You're not welcome here. People like you don't belong in the Burg."

That irritated me "People like me? What is that supposed to mean? I'm trying to find Stephanie. Do you know where she is?"

"You're nothing but an abominable thug and have no place in our world. You and that ungrateful bitch deserve to go straight to hell. I don't know where she is and I certainly don't care. Now get out of my house." She yanked open the door and held it until I walked through before slamming it behind me.

What the hell was that about? I thought making my way back to the explorer before heading to Rangeman. I've got some investigating to do. Maybe speak with Ranger as I knew he and Stephanie were still quite close after they decided to be just friends.

Pulling into the underground garage of Rangeman, I ran into Woody carrying a suitcase heading for his personal vehicle. "Hey man how's it going?" I asked doing a fist bump with him. I hadn't seen him since I'd been back as we were always working alternative shifts or he was out of town.

"Yeah great, look I've got a plane to catch I'll see you in a bit. Sorry man." He seemed different, a bit distant. What the hell had happened whilst I was gone? Have I returned to a parallel universe? Is this the twilight zone?

Riding the elevator to the fifth floor I nodded to Cal and Eric who were watching the monitors before heading to Rangers office.

"Yo man." I said walking in and shutting the door behind me before flopping onto the couch.

"Make yourself comfortable Santos." He replied with a smirk and raised eyebrow.

Ranger and I had grown up together and everyone thought we were related so I knew he was just being a smartarse.

"Don't mind if I do. Hey I need to talk to you about Stephanie." All playfulness disappeared and his blank face slammed down. Uh oh.

"Not a good idea. I'm not impressed by the fact that you seem to have hurt Stephanie so bad that she'd leave. The only thing stopping me kicking your arse over this is that you're injured. But mark my words, as soon as Bobby clears you, all bets are off."

I let out a sigh; I'd been doing that a lot lately. "Man, I never meant to hurt her. You know what it's like to be called up out of the blue and how little time they can give you. I asked Bobby to tell her for me because I couldn't. Now she's gone and I don't know what to do." I paused, trying to read him but coming up with nothing "Do you know where she is? Or even where she was heading?"

He studied me for a moment before leaning back in his chair. "No, but I'm not sure I'd tell you if I did. She's ok though, I've spoken to her and she's happy and wants to be left alone. Rumour has it around here that you planned to break up with her but before you got the chance you were called away." His face darkened at that and I'm sure the shock I felt showed on my face.

"Like hell I was. We were only together for a short length of time but it was amazing how connected we were. Given how in love with you she was. Whoever started that rumour is going to have some serious explaining to do."

He nodded, obviously believing me "Hope you know I'm still going to kick your arse though."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know." I said walking out of his office to mine.

*** A Year after Stephanie Left ***

I've spent the past 5 months looking for Stephanie with no luck. It's like she dropped off the face of the earth.

Mary Lou had heard from her a couple of times but she wouldn't say where she was. Just that she was doing well and was happy. I had my suspicions that she knew but respected her best friend too much to tattle.

A pain rippled through my chest thinking about her with someone else, settling down with someone other than me. I should have told her that I loved her before I left. Now it's too late

The phone on my desk rang. "Santos" I answered gruffly, annoyed to have been interrupted during my thoughts.

"Lester my office now" Ranger demanded before slamming down the phone.

Ranger and I had been getting along better since we had our little discussion and he'd beaten me stupid on the mats a month later, as promised.

I sighed making my way out the office and down the hall to his. I met Bobby outside the door.

"Any idea what's going on man?" He asked. I just shrugged before knocking and entering.

"Gentlemen, take a seat" Ranger said, waving his hand to the chairs in front of his desk where Tank was currently sitting.

"We've been called in on a big dollar skip. Word has it that he's skipped to Austin. He's suspected of killing and raping 5 women, after stalking them for days. We got a call saying he was seen visiting his mother." Even criminals are afraid of their mothers' wrath if they don't visit.

There were growls coming from the three of us. All determined to get this animal and put him back where he belongs.

"I need you, Lester and Bobby to go down to Austin and find this guy. Woody will go with you as he knows the area. He's down there now visiting his family so you'll fly out to meet him tonight." Ranger handed us both a file on the skip.

Michael Joseph, 35, 6"1 and 300 pounds. Raised in Austin but moved around, living in Newark for the past 7 years. An ugly man with a couple of teeth missing, probably more by the time we were finished with him.

Once Ranger noticed we were finished reading he spoke up again "Your flight leaves at 6pm. Dismissed." He turned to Tank and they started talking about their upcoming meetings with potential new clients this week.

"Off to Austin we go. Hell yeah." Bobby said with a laugh, dancing away as we walked to the elevator. I just rolled my eyes and laughed at him. Bobby loves Texas and the Texas ladies love Bobby.

We boarded the Rangeman charted flight to Austin and settled in for the next 4 hours, deciding to catch up on some sleep as it would probably be a long night.

My dreams were plagued with Stephanie's pained blue eyes.

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><p><strong>I had all my chapters written but after reading your lovely reviews I re-read my chapters and thought I can't post this garbage.<strong>

**Still not 100% happy with it but it's something.**

**Thank you again to all who have reviewed and followed my story.**

**I'll try not to take so long next time**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Stephanie's POV

I turned my cell phone on after my class at 7.30, making my way to the library to study for my exams, it beeped in my hand telling me I had 3 voicemails.

"Hey honey, just checking in. Azza is doing better. His fever has gone down so don't worry. I'm keeping an eye on him. Have a good day." I couldn't help but smile at Woody's message. He knew I was worried about Aaron as he'd had a fever for the past couple of days.

The second message was "Hey, umm Ranger called. I need to go chase a skip tonight but it won't be until you get home. He's flying a couple of guys up to help with the takedown but I don't know who yet. I'll call you when I do. Hope you're having a good day." Great now I get to spend the night in the house, alone. Again.

The third message had me falling into the first chair I came across. "I hate to do this to you Hun, but its Bobby and Lester. I've told them they can't stay here as I have family staying so you should be ok. But they get in around 10 so I'll have to take off before then to meet them. Call me when you get this. Bye."

I sat there with my head in my hands. Seriously why does life have to be so cruel. I can't risk running into Lester. I can't face him and the pain that comes with it.

Every time I think about Lester, which is all the time, I can't help but wonder if I should have waited for him to come back. I'd picked up the phone to call him so many times but chickened out.

Shaking those thoughts away I picked my phone up and called Woody back.

"Hey! What took you so long? You ok? Are you coming home?" He sounded worried for me and I couldn't help but smile. It was cute, but shh don't tell him that.

"I'm fine. My class ran long and I've just made it to the library to do some study but I guess I'm coming home."

He let out a sigh "I'm sorry. I didn't know they were coming. Now I feel bad because I forgot you had to prep for exams. Do you want me to make dinner?"

"Not your fault. Nah, I'll bring something back if you wanted to order something and I'll pick it up. I'll be leaving in about 10 minutes, I just have to pack up my stuff and I'll be on my way."

"No worries. I'll order Chinese and set up for dinner. See you soon."

We said our goodbyes and hung up. I packed up my books and made my way out the campus and to the car park.

I looked around as I crossed the dark car park, feeling as if I was being watched. As I turned I ran into a guy crossing in front of me.

Letting out a little yelp, I jumped back. Goosebumps immediately spread across my body.

He murmured a sorry and walked away. There was something above him that reminded me of Abruzzi and had me walking to my car quicker before jumping in and locking the doors.

I stopped at the red dragon Chinese restaurant on the way home to get dinner and had the feeling of being watched again.  
>I looked around but couldn't see anyone, so I continued on my way home, keeping an eye out for anyone following me like Woody taught me.<p>

Pulling up on to the driveway, Woody was standing on the front porch waiting for me holding Aaron.

"Ahh my two favourite boys! Hello baby" I said taking Aaron and giving him a kiss, handing Woody the food. "Hey you." I gave Woody a kiss on the cheek and followed him into the house.

"How was your day trouble? How was your lecture?" He said pouring us drinks. Well he poured me lemonade and had a bottle of water. Damn health nuts, I only enjoy water in my coffee.

"It was average. You know how exciting I find science." I said with a roll of my eyes which made him laugh "But neuroscience is a lot more exciting."

We sat down and talked about our day and the take down tonight. This guy sounded like a real piece of work and I was glad the guys were going to take him back to jail. Hopefully before he strikes again.

We were talking about weekend plans, provided everything went well tonight, when Woody's phone rang.

"Yo." He paused "Hey Les, yeah, I'll meet you there in 15." He stopped to listen again "No that's fine, I'll drive so you guys don't have to go out your way. See you in 15." He hung up and ran his hand across his face before looking at me.

"Sorry honey I've got to go. I'll call you if I'm going to be late. You sure you'll be alright?" He looked guilty about having to leave me suddenly.

"Alex Miguel Woodridge, I've told you before. Stop apologising to me for having to work. _WE_ will be fine. Now go before they decide to come here."

He smiled before getting up and kissing my head. He grabbed his gun belt off the cupboard by the front door, he paused at the door, holding it ajar. "Remember to lock the door and turn on the alarm."

I nodded "always do. Be careful." I got up and locked the door behind him, before turning on the alarm.

I started cleaning up the mess from dinner and that Woody somehow managed to make today in the few hours he was alone. There were toys, crumbs, dirty dishes, socks and shoes spread around the coffee table.

Turning out the lights I headed upstairs. Something was nagging at me, so I got Aaron and brought him into my room, locking the door. Normally I just leave it open but something didn't feel right.

Aaron was gurgling in his crib, looking around the room. He loves to be awake at night and tends not to sleep until around midnight. Makes for some long nights, when I'm normally up early with him.

I sat on the bed and read my textbooks for a while, scribbling down notes on the pad next to me. I had an exam coming up next week and hadn't done a great deal of studying lately, other than what I had picked up in class.

I put my book down, slid between the sheets and turned the light out.

My thoughts wandered to Lester and how he was doing. Laying there listening to Aaron gurgle, I picked up my phone, scrolling through until I found Les' number. Just as I was about to hit dial headlights lit up the bedroom before going darkness returned. I heard a car door shut and got up to look out the window. Surely Woody wasn't back yet, he'd only been gone a couple of hours.

The sound of the front door handle rattling carried through the house, before a banging like someone trying to hip and shoulder the door open.

I heard another car squeal to a stop outside the house and a lot of car doors slamming and yelling.

Reaching into the back of my bedside drawer I grabbed the glock that Woody insisted I keep there for safety. Checking on Aaron I slid my phone into my pyjama pocket and crept down the stairs with my gun aiming down towards the front door.

Peering through the peephole I saw a big guy with a knife and Woody dancing around each other on the front lawn, Lester and Bobby were trying to get close enough to take the guy down.

I yanked open the front door and distracted everyone enough that the skip had turned and noticed Lester and Bobby there. He took a swipe at Bobby who jumped back, but Lester who was staring at me was a little slower at reacting.

Like watching a movie in slow motion, I saw the blade slice across Les' abdomen before he stumbled backwards. There was a gunshot and the skip hit the ground, screaming about how Woody had blown his kneecap apart. The colour drained from Les' face as he knelt on the ground, pressing his hand onto his stomach.

Woody cuffed the skip and Bobby went to check on Lester. Dashing into the house, I grabbed a towel off the kitchen counter and the first aid kit off the top of the fridge.

As I got back outside I sat on the ground next to Lester and pressed the towel onto his stomach as Bobby went through the first aid kit, looking for some gauze. He let out a slight hiss of pain as I made contact with his wound.

"Sorry." I mumbled, instinctively grabbing his hand.

He looked up and me, his eyes showing a look of confusion and pain. I wasn't sure if the look of pain was because of his wound or because of me. But I was assuming mostly because of me.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, not letting go of my hand which warmed my heart a little.

"I live here." I paused not sure what to say, before it really sank in that he had essentially been stabbed and it was my fault "Oh my god. I got you stabbed; you're sitting here bleeding because of me. Are you ok?"

He chucked slightly before stopping, obviously it hurt "It's just a flesh wound Steph. I'm fine. Really" he said squeezing my hand.

"Alright kids, sorry to break this up but it's time to get you to the hospital and stitched up" Bobby interrupted us, helping Les stand up. "Are you coming Steph?"

I nodded before pausing "Yeah I'll meet you there."

"Bobby, you take Lester to the hospital. I'll take this piece of shit to the police station and we'll meet you there."

We got a nod of agreement before Bobby helped Les into the backseat before taking off towards the hospital.

Woody had the skip loaded into the back of his SUV already so he came over and wrapped me in a hug.

"What the hell happened? Why the hell was he here?" I asked waving my hand towards the SUV.

He let out a sigh "We were parked out the front of his place when he took off down the street. I got stuck at the intersection on Olden and when we got down here we saw him trying to beat the door down."

"I'm glad you guys were here. Even when you're away, you're keeping us safe."

"How do you always manage to attract these crazies? I know it's not your fault but I swear my heart stopped when I saw him here."

"No idea. But I ran into him at school today. It's the first time I'd ever seen him but he made me uncomfortable. I need to get back to Aaron. Come back and get me before you go to the hospital?"

He agreed before jumping in the car and leaving.

Jogging up the stairs into the bedroom, I picked Aaron up and gave him the biggest hug.

"I love you little buddy. We're going to go see Daddy but you have to be gentle. Mommy got him hurt." He just gurgled and giggled in my arms.

I placed him on my bed between two pillows before stripping out of my pyjamas and throwing on a pair of Jeans, t-shirt and a jacket.

Picking Aaron up we went into his room and I changed his diaper and put him into some warm clothes. Taking him downstairs we sat on the couch waiting for Woody to get back.

Headlights shone through the window, causing shadows to bounce off the walls. I picked up Aaron's car seat and carried him out the front door. As we stepped outside Woody took his car carrier from me and placed him in the car, buckling him in.

He climbed in the driver's seat and backed out the driveway.

"So, are you ready to face to music?" He asked, glancing at me before focusing back on the road.

"I think a firing squad will be more pleasant than this." I said with a sigh. I turned and looked out the window watching the world go by.

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><p><strong>Sorry for the delay (Again)<strong>

I have terrible time management skills and I keep forgetting how to post up chapters

**Thank you to all who have read/followed/favourited/reviewed this story. Your support is greatly appreciated.**

**Hope you all have a good weekend**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: So sorry for the delay.**

**My computer kept crashing and I lost this so I re-typed it tonight.**

**Probably full of mistakes but it's 11pm here in Australia and I'm exhausted and felt bad for being a terrible updater.**

**Disclaimer: All recognisable Characters belong to Janet Evanovich.**

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><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

Woody's POV

I left Steph and Aaron after dinner and went to meet the guys. They were staying at the Crowne Plaza in Austin and we had agreed that I would meet them there.

Exiting the interstate I pulled into the hotel car park. I texted Bobby and let them know I was here.

I stood in front of the main entrance doors waiting for the guys. The doors slid open and they both stepped out carrying a bag each.

"Yo guys. How's it going?" I said fist bumping with them both. I'd taken two weeks off to come visit my family and Steph as it was my mom's 60th birthday last week.

"Hey man, good to see you." Les said returning my greeting.

Bobby just nodded and headed towards where they parked their SUV "Going good bro. We all ready to go?" I held up my duffel bag and he handed me the keys "You know the area better than us"

We threw our bags in the boot and climbed into the car. "What's this guy's address? It wasn't in the file Tank emailed over this afternoon." Lester read out an address in Brentwood so I pulled out the lot and back onto the interstate.

After we got to his house, well his parents' house, we sat around down the street for about an hour before there was any movement.

Our skip slipped out the back door and into a car before taking off down the street.

We followed him through the neighbourhood, back onto the interstate then into Cherry Creek. I started to get nervous as we got closer and closer to my house. Closer to Steph and Aaron.

I swore as we got stuck and a set of lights as he blew through the amber light and the car in front of us stopped.

We took off again and I saw our skips car parked in front of my house trying to beat the door down. I swear my heart stopped when I saw him there.

Bobby and Lester jumped out of the car before I had even put the handbrake on. I reached out and pulled the guy back by his shirt. He hit the ground before instantly rolling to his feet pulling a knife out from the back of his pants. We danced around each other on the lawn before the front door opened and Steph stepped out with her gun drawn.

I watched as both Bobby and Lester got distracted and noticed her, knowing this wouldn't end well I turned back to our skip but he'd become aware that Bobby and Lester we no longer focused on him.

He lunged at Bobby who quickly stepped out the way before he turned and took a shot at Lester. I watched as his blade slide across Les' chest before he stepped back.

I pulled my gun out and let off a round when he took another step towards Lester. He dropped to the ground clutching his knee, screaming at me about crippling him and having blown his knee apart. Big whiney baby

Steph ran out the house to Lester's side. I smiled hoping that they would work out their problems and move forward. Steph is family now and I want her to be happy.

I cuffed the skip whilst he was still on the ground before grabbing an extra couple of pairs of cuffs out the SUV we just abandoned.

Removing Aaron's car seat, I loaded him into the back of Steph's SUV as mine was still in the parking lot of the hotel. I cuffed him to the grab handle on the roof, slamming the door in his face.

We agreed that Steph and I would meet them at the hospital before Bobby loaded Lester in the car and left. I then took the skip to the police station before returning to my house to pick Steph up who I knew was nervous about her talk with Les.

Lester POV

I sat in the emergency room waiting for a doctor to return and do my stitches. Pieces of Bobby's conversation with the police floated back through the curtain to me but I really wasn't listening. I knew I'd have to talk to them soon too even though I'd be telling them the same thing Bobby did.

The curtain parted and the Doctor and a nurse walked in.

"Mr Santos. I'm Doctor Lucas and this is Elizabeth. Let's take a look at your wound and get you stitched up ok?" I nodded lifting my shirt revealing the angry red gash.

"That's quite nasty. We'll have to clean the cut out first before we stitch it up to prevent any infection. Elizabeth will do that and I will be back shortly to finish." He pulled his gloves off, threw them in the trash and left the cubical.

Elizabeth was talking, well flirting with me, as she cleaned out my wound.

"I finish at 7; maybe I could bring you breakfast and talk." I caught her saying, drawing my attention back to her. Over the years I've learnt to zone out to ignore pain, makes surviving easier.

"Sorry, I don't think that's a good idea. Plus I'll be out of here soon." Well at least I hoped I would be.

I heard Steph's voice carry back to me, asking Bobby if I was ok before their voices disappeared. Obviously they'd walked down the hallway out of earshot, or I'd suddenly gone deaf, which I doubted.

Elizabeth finished what she was doing, placed some clean gauze on my stomach and left, mumbling about how the doctor would be in soon.

Glancing up as the curtain shifted, Bobby stuck his head in. "Hey man how you going in here?"

"Yeah fine, just waiting on the doctor. Is Steph out there?" He nodded.

"Want me to send her in?"

"Hell yes. Thanks man." He pulled his head back through the curtain and a minute later Steph walked through.

Her voice was soft as she said hi to me, standing against the curtain nervously.

"Hey. You ok?" Her head shot up as she looked at me with an incredulous look on her face.

"Am I ok? You're the one who got stabbed; I should be asking you that question. After all it's my fault."

"Come here." I said patting the side of the bed shuffling over slightly. She walked over and sat down by my feet. Not where I wanted but I wasn't going to complain "This is by no means your fault and you are not to blame yourself. Accidents happen, especially with crazy serial killers involved."

She nodded "I've missed you." She whispered quietly.

Inside I could feel butterflies in my chest. Not very manly I know but I'm so happy that she obviously still has feelings for me."

"I've missed you every day that we've been apart. I'm sorry I had to go on that mission so suddenly without being able to say goodbye. Why'd you leave?" I heard my voice get louder and slightly more annoyed when I asked that question.

Steph flinched slightly at my tone "I'm sorry you're mad at me but I wasn't exactly happy when you were gone. I went to Rangeman to give Tank my notice and heard a couple of guys talking. They were going on about you and me and how I was just a phase and you were going to dump me before being called away. I felt like this huge joke to everyone, like everyone was laughing behind my back because I was the only one who didn't know what was going on."

I couldn't believe it. I was going to find whoever had been making that shit up and kick their arse or arses as the case may be. Reaching forward, ignoring the pain that shot through my stomach, I grabbed her hand.

"I wasn't going to break up with you. I was bloody happy with you Steph until I had to leave. Now I don't know who was saying that crap but I'm not impressed and they'll pay. I'm sorry you had to feel that way but nobody was ever laughing at you or thought you were a joke." I paused stroking her hand, letting my words sink in before I remembered what she said. "You said you were going there to quit when you heard the guys talking. Why were you going to leave?"

She looked nervous and turned away from me staring at the floor. "Steph. Answer me." She muttered something that I couldn't make out. "What was that? I can't hear you when you're talking to the floor Steph."

Never in a million years could I expect the words that came out of her mouth next "I was pregnant and my mother disowned me. I was just going to ask for a desk job but then I heard them and I just had to leave." It all made sense now. The cold reception I'd received from her family. Her mother was a bitch who hated Steph but her Dad and grandmother were trying to protect her. From me.

I was at a loss for words; thousands of thoughts were running around in my head. I didn't know where to start.

"Lester?" She cautiously questioned, touching my leg "Are you ok?"

"Did you have the baby?" the question left my lips before I realised I was asking the question. She nodded.

"We have a son and he's amazing Les." Her eyes were brimming with unshed tears.

I tapped the bed next to me and she slid up and lay down, facing me.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you. But how do you drop that bombshell on someone?"

"It's ok Steph. I'm just glad you told me and didn't try to keep him from me. That wouldn't be ok. I'll admit I didn't see myself ever having kids but I wouldn't give this up for anything. Can I meet him?

"Yeah. He's with Woody and Bobby in the waiting room now. He's probably sleeping but I'll go get him." She slid off the bed just as Doctor Lucas was walking back into the room.

"Okay Mister Santos. Let's get you stitched up and on your way. I hear you have a doctor with you so we're happy to release you into his care." He turned to Steph "We'll be about 10 to 15 minutes if you wanted to wait in the hall."

20 minutes later I was stitched up and being handed my release form. As Doctor Lucas left the cubical, Steph came back in carrying my son.

"Lester Santos, this is your son Aaron Miguel." She said handing me the tiny bundle.

"What's his last name?" I asked staring down at the most beautiful baby I'd ever seen. My son. Wow.

"Santos Plum. I couldn't decide and I didn't want to leave either of our families out."

"It's perfect. He's perfect." I said pulling her in for a kiss, feeling ridiculously overjoyed when she kissed me back.

Could life get any better?

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><p><strong>I'll try and get the last chapter up sooner than I did with this one<strong>  
><strong>But again, I have to rewrite the whole thing thanks to reliable technology.<strong>

**Happy Monday!**

**A/N: So Aaron was named after Woody because of his support of Steph and basically being her big brother through out this all**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Final chapter is finally being posted. It's super late and I'm very sorry for that.

I had to resort to pen and paper for this last chapter as I've been without a computer for the past few weeks when my hard drive crashed.

If anyone has stuck with me, thank you I appreciate your patience and kind words.

**Disclaimer:** See the previous chapters.

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><p><strong>Steph POV<strong>

Lester spent a week with us at Woody's house recovering.

It was great to spend so much time together after so long apart. Watching him bond with Aaron was adorable and I think for a while there he preferred Les over me, but I had the food and he clearly takes after me, so food is a number 1 priority.

We spent the week watching movies, playing games and catching up with each other. I learnt that he got wounded on his mission and his leg still wasn't quite right so he was thinking about giving up field work and doing more planning of takedowns etc.

Every night after we had put Aaron to bed he'd bring up coming back to Trenton with him.

He promised to help keep my mother away from me and be there to support both Aaron and I for as long as we'd have him.

The day he was planning on leaving, I told him we were coming home with him. Having called Ranger to let him know not to book Lester a flight in advance, we packed up my belongings into a removal truck and drove back to Trenton. Taking some extra time to sightsee and spend alone as a family.

Lester had an apartment outside of Rangeman which we stayed in for about three months before deciding to buy a bigger place together, that Aaron could grow up and play in comfortably.

We bought a house just outside of Trenton in Lawrenceville. It's a 5 bedroom, 2 storey house set on half an acre. With a fully decked out kitchen with chef quality appliances, granite counters, 3 entertaining rooms with vaulted ceilings, plus a gym downstairs in the basement.

As soon as we moved back, I transferred to Rutgers University to complete my degree in psychology.

At least once a week Les and I would go on a date. Uncle Woody was always happy to babysit Aaron for us. Surprisingly Ranger volunteers a bit as well, he's quite taken with our little guy. Of course my dad, who loves his only grandson, is over most weekends to spend time with him, even bringing Grandma Mazur. My mother hasn't seen him once.

Les and I went out for dinner at a cute little Italian restaurant about six months after we moved to Trenton where he proposed. Thankfully not making a big spectacle about is as he knows I hate being in the public's eye.  
>I of course said yes.<p>

We got married July 27th 2013 in a beach wedding at Point Pleasant. Aaron was the ring bearer. He was absolutely adorable wandering down the aisle, randomly stopping to pick up flowers that Lisa had thrown in her role of flower girl.

A month after the wedding, Lester and I discovered I was pregnant. This was a huge shock, as we hadn't really been trying and I'd been on birth control. However, when I was sick before the wedding, I had to stop taking the pill. Regardless of the how and the when, we were over the moon.

Aaron didn't really know what was going on but enjoyed watching my stomach grow and feel the little kicks.

We discovered that we were having twins, a boy and a girl. Which I wasn't sure I was ready for. But with Lester by my side I knew we could handle anything that got thrown our way.

Given the complications I had during my pregnancy with Aaron, my doctor induced me early. Which apparently normal with Twins anyway.

On December 31st, a beautiful snowy night, we welcomed into the world our newest additions.

Abigail (Abi) Maria Santos and Robert (Robbie) Francis Santos. Abigail got her name from a TV show, when Les and I decided we loved the name, her middle name, is my mother in law – Lester's Mothers name.

We named Robbie after Lester's dad who sadly passed away two months before the twins were born. Obviously he gets him middle name from my dad, just with a slight twist.

As Lester and I were both raised with different faiths, neither of which we followed, we decided to just have a naming day for the kids. Aaron had his before we got married, just in case something happened whilst we were on our honeymoon in Tahiti.

We appointed God Parents for each of them, which considering how big Les' side of the family is, was a hard choice to make.

Aaron's god father is Woody and Ranger, with his god mother being Leana. Leana is Woody's fiancée and Lester's cousin. They met at Aaron's 2nd birthday party and had been inseparable since.

Deciding who to appoint for Abi and Robbie was difficult. We couldn't decide if we should stick with the same God parents as Aaron or chose different ones.

We decided that given the different relationships that had formed over the years, different people would now be suitable. Not that we weren't still close with Ranger, Woody & Leana. They just we're a bigger part of Aaron's life.

After much deliberation we chose to make Lester's Sister, Arizona and her husband Brett the god parents for Abi and Robbie.  
>We also decided that my sister should be a god mother, even though her 5 girls (yikes) are super crazy and weird. Lester's twin brother Damian was also thrown in the mix.<p>

3 Months later we're all doing great, although when Lester is at work it's hard to keep up with three kids. Once one starts crying they all start.  
>Thankfully Aaron is happy to be sat down with some sliced apple and a coloring book and doesn't seem to mind the twins.<p>

Ranger is coming round tonight to babysit the kids, so Lester and I can have a grown up night. Will be nice to end a night without spit up on my shirt.

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><p><strong>The End <strong>

Thank you to all of those who stuck with me throughout this story.

I'm sorry it went downhill and took forever to update ALL the time. Mostly my fault with a little bit of technical issues thrown in.

In future I may post a new story but will make sure it's finished (and backed up) and I'm completely happy before posting.

**Happy Friday!**


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